In this broad context, American foreign and domestic policy are created by a variety of actors and agencies, including the electorate at the polls, Congress, the Executive Branch and the president and his Cabinet, and the military.
Edwards and Wayne (In Ricketts and Norton, 1997) have noted that the primary mission of the U.S. Department of Defense and its internal agencies (including the military services) and of foreign policy in general is to ensure the security of the United States and, in the process, to protect its foreign allies and international interests. To accomplish this, the use of military force or the establishment of a military presence abroad is often indicated. In cases where actual force is to be employed, the President and Congress take the lead role. Under the War Powers Act, the ability of the president to order American troops into the field is limited; nevertheless, in the cases of Bosnia, Haiti, and Zaire, the president has possessed the power to deploy troops abroad without Congressional approval. Foreign policy, say Edwar
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